‘Fiscal cliff’ deal closer as Obama-Boehner talks accelerate

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

WASHINGTON — Negotiations to prevent the year-end budget crisis accelerated Monday as President Obama and House Speaker John A. Boehner convened privately at theWhite House in what was widely regarded as a sign that a deal could be within reach.

Differences remain, but the quickened pace of the talks, with new offers from both sides, suggested a serious effort to cut through the partisan divide and strike an agreement.

Obama made a counteroffer that brought the two even closer together. The president offered to raise rates only on income above $400,000, according to a source familiar with the talks who was not authorized to speak publicly about the negotiations.